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The Block
Formerly a quiet community college east of Seattle, The Block is now one of the most hated locales in the region. Home to over a dozen slaver crews, it is a premier spot for the flesh trade in the region, and naturally avoided by reputable individuals. History Pre-War Eastern Seattle Community College was built in 2036, and saw thousands of students pass through it's campus every year, most on their way to the University of Washington. It would have little that was news worthy, and was quiet on the day of The Great War. Being a fair distance outside of Seattle, it wasn't hit directly by the Bombs, though it's windows would shatter, and it was bathed in the resulting radiation. Some students and staff would go there and try to escape the chaos in the city, but all would either move on after a few days or be killed by the radiation. Free Town Afterward it would be picked over survivors and scavengers, with no one staying longer than a week, until spring of 2143 when it was claimed by a group of refugees escaping from the New Order. These people huddled in the administration building, scavenging what they could from the cafeteria and various vending machines, until they were sure they weren't pursued. They then would look over the campus, finding it looked defensible. They would spend the rest of the year making a crude debris wall as they searched for food in the nearby woods and structures. The winter found their wall only a quarter completed at waist height, and their food supply consisting of seeds from wild plants, and a few Black Horn hunted. This was a harsh time for these refugees, but they managed to pull through it, and began their work with a purpose in the spring. Planting their seeds, they redoubled their efforts on the wall and hunted when not working. They came across a friendly group of tribals in April, and traded meat in exchange for the tribals identifying what plants and berries were edible and how to prepare them. This information proved well worth the exchange, and the refugees were soon trading with the tribals as well, further aiding the settlement. A merchant passed in 2145 and after seeing the residents weren't raiders, ventured in to trade. The refugees bought ammo and some medicine with what valuables hadn't already been taken, and when asked about the name of their home, paused before replying Safe Home, reflecting their hopes for the settlement. While the itinerant trader thought it a subpar name, he kept it to himself and went on his way. Safe Home soon began to receive others who wished to settle there, many of them also refugees. While initially fearful of some sort of ruse, the residents eventually opened their doors to the newcomers, who expanded the population to thirty-two by 2147. This increase of the workforce also allowed them to finish their wall, made of an ugly mix of debris, dirt, wood, and stone, as well as expand their garden with plants from the forest. It also led to a new problem, namely sleeping quarters in the winter. While there had been enough room for everyone to have their own space, the influx of people meant that warm spaces were now housing two or three individuals, something that inconvenienced the first settlers, who had grown used to their privacy and space. To address this, the community began to repair other buildings, notably Garrett Hall, using the desks to close some of the holes in the walls and windows. While space was now available, blankets and mattresses were needed, and the nearby houses and dorms had already been emptied of them. This was taken care of by trading with their tribal neighbors for rough Bleaters' fur blankets, and by constructing crude pallets out of wood. This passed the winter of 2147 well enough, and the rest of the decade was spent further improving the campus, with an addition to the wall in 2150. That year saw an attack by raiders, who were run off only after they had killed two of the residents. The people of Safe Home mourned this loss, but were grateful enough the town had survived, and began to drill to prepare for another attack. The militia got their first chance the next year, as their hanging meat attracted a pack of feral ghouls who rushed the walls. While the mutants were unable to climb up, the militia had a difficult time killing them efficiently, not having trained under pressure. After dispatching the ghouls and taking what few items they retained in their madness, the corpses were put in a ditch further down the road. Safe Home continued to grow after this and became a stop for people coming west over the Cascades. While they were initially against this development, the residents of the town would realize that these mixed-race travelers weren't affiliated with the Neo-Nazis in the ruins. One particularly ambitious resident named Ann Murray would even open a hostel in the maintenance building, and even managed to repair a boiler for heat. While only a few stayed there any given week, it did go a long way towards reducing the community's fears of the outside. By 2160 Murray was the richest person in town, and Safe Home operated as something of a large caravanersai, servicing and trading with the various merchants traveling to and from Seattle. One development that resulted from this was the further renovation of the maintenance building and Marjeen Hall, the former still serving as housing, and the latter now a general store. This also necessitated an expansion in the wall and another water pump constructed to accommodate the expansion of the settlement. The expansion was finished by 2164, just in time for an attack by raiders, who faced a more disciplined militia and harder-to-scale walls than the previous band did. The attackers retreated after losing four of their own, all of whom were stripped of all usable items before being buried in shallow graves down the road, in what the locals started to refer to as 'the graveyard.' Safe Home would face trouble later that year however, in the form of Crop Rot striking their Razor-grain. Having to burn it to prevent the fungus from spreading to their other crops, the loss hurt their food supply just before harvest time. This resulted in them buying food from passing traders, as well as from their tribal neighbors. The latter of whom also offered a purplish paste in a jar, which the townspeople tried out of curiosity. While almost all of them enjoyed it, several would take it to excess that winter, with two dying from exposure after spending almost an entire day outside in summer clothes. The introduction of Gollygoo proved to be a turning point in Safe Home's history, as it began to be used more and more frequently by the townspeople, and those who did not imbibe were unable to manage the settlement themselves, while maintaining trade with travelers. This resulted in some areas not being maintained as they had before, and somewhat fewer traders interacting with them. Before this could be corrected, slavers attacked the settlement in 2170, easily overrunning the walls and overpowering the militia. Slaver Fort Initially just planning on looting the place and leaving with their captures, the slavers decided to settle after they had a look at the settlement. This also caused them to put the survivors to work refortifying the town walls, and to send runners to bring the rest of their bands. the trio of slaver crews that went in on the attack each took a building to call their own, and built a series of communal pens on a lawn in the quad. this latter was quickly modified as the slaves naturally intermingled, and each band claimed the same slave. The pens were then divided in three, though another issue would arise in the coming week. This was due to the lack of merchant traffic, which the slavers were expecting, both to sell their captures as well as to maintain the standard of living in the settlement. As none of the new rulers were interested in farming, it was grudgingly decided to free the non-addict slaves and set them to work maintaining the town, which the slavers had started referring to as "the Block" amongst themselves. Those goo-heads that remained were sold when the first buyers started arriving in September, though a dozen still remained by winter, and the slavers sold the rest in bulk. The first spring under the new management saw a boost in their numbers, when The Chainers, a minor crew from west Seattle displaced by the New Order came to the gates, and asked entry. The Original crews talked amongst themselves, and While the Easties wanted to refuse them, the others saw the value of having more guns in the very real likelihood of an attack. The Chainers were admitted in, and moved into the former recreation building, constructing pens in front of it. The slavers wasted no time filling all the cages that year, bring in sixty-one captures that year, selling them all before settling in for the winter. This would cause some tension, as The Chainers felt that their quarters were inferior to the others crews', who told the newcomers to fix them up in the spring. Any hostility blew over in March of 2172, when The Block was attacked by a raider clan, with every gun needed to repel them. After stripping and burning the dead, the slavers proceeded with their usual activities, with the addition of further fortifying their new home. This passed as quietly as they had before for the slavers and servants under them, with the latter growing used to their new status, and their overlords more trusting of their movements. This would be shown in 2175 when the servants were allowed to congregate and repair their own structure, with the science building claimed. While a few proposed gathering what few arms they could and shooting any slaver that came into range, most knew that it was a fool's task and to simply bide their time. Their opportunity came five years later, during a particularly rough winter. The Chainers, having never dedicated any real effort to insulate their quarters, voiced their resentment to the other crews. One particular spat between a member of The Easties and the Chainers resulted in a brawl, and while they had blown over in the past, someone pulled a gun a fired, leaving an Eastie dead and two of their rivals wounded. This sparked a short civil war in The Block with the other crews quickly getting swept up. While the servants initially hid in their quarters while the slavers killed each other, a group of the Easties had other plans. Now leaderless, several members disagreed with the servants not being sold, and staged an attack on their home, requiring the other crews to help. This proved to be the last action of the war, as the surviving slavers realized that they couldn't control the compound and still raid on their own. To that end, the leaders of the crews came together, with some of the more prominent servants present, to set out a framework for the future. This would be known as the First Council, and while the agreements of mutual defense and a vote before outsiders were admitted to the ranks were formalities, the agreement not to unduly enslave or punish the residents was also agreed upon. The major sticking point of that first council was the issue of housing, with each remaining gang feeling entitled to the best in the administrative building. This was solved by one of the resident witnesses, who suggested a contest, with whoever brings in the most caps getting the best spots. While they were surprised as to the source of this solution, each crew readily agreed to this, and the First Council ended. The spring of 2181 saw the slavers of The Block set forth with a new purpose, while the other residents set about repairing the damage done by the war. The latter would also get some of the exterior lights back online, providing light for the often gloomy courtyard at night. That winter saw the Corranes get the highest price for their slaves and take the best quarters, with the other two crews consenting to the outcome. This set the pattern for the next twelve years, until another crew came to the gate in 2193. Calling themselves the Columbia Slavers, they claimed to have been displaced from their home on the namesake river. The Council talked amongst themselves, and seeing the applicants seemed like Slavers, allowed them entry to The Block. The Columbia Slavers moved into the steam tunnels initially, and lost no time in joining the contest. Their preferred target were Tribals, which would lead to good profits, along with conflict later on. 2200 the slavers continued on for the rest of the century, though in 2201 faced a new problem. In short, they were too successful, and their wasn't enough buyers to purchase all of the slaves, putting a strain on the settlement's food and water supplies. The council was called, and while no one wanted to lose profits, they would all (if grudgingly) admit that they couldn't maintain the current level of activity without something changing. This proved a simplistic change, as they chose several slaves who were docile, but still strong enough to work, and made them residents of The Block. With this increase of manpower the fields were expanded, though the rest of that year was lean until the buyers came in the fall, allowing the slavers to stock up from the few caravans that serviced them. The next year showed the effects of the council's decision, with a larger harvest coming in, and one of the new residents able to tend to the ill, having been a veterinarian of sorts. The Block's success did not go unnoticed however, and a band of mercenaries attacked in 2204. Mainly untrained youth from The Slants, they were beaten back fairly easily. Regardless, this attack showed the slavers that they needed to boost their defenses. The council agreed to spend some of the contest money on several turrets, placing them near the gate and along the walls, as well as clearing some of the trees nearby. To the surprise to the workers of The Block, the Council ordered the slaves to do this, both to wear down those with strength, and to see if any were hiding any talent. As could be expected, the slaves sandbagged when they could and sabotaged some of the guns' wiring, but after several beatings and a public execution, the work was done by August. Another crew would join the Block in 2211, this time from the ranks of the younger residents who wanted adventure. While their parents and others thought they were traitorous scum, the slavers allowed them to operate, mainly from amusement. Calling themselves The Blockers, these youngsters went about their capturing differently than the others, mainly by drugging. They did this by traveling to various settlements and inns and buying drinks for others, slipping drugs in after several. This approach brought in less slaves overall, though their quality was above average, putting The Blockers in second place for that year. This success surprised both the other Slavers and the residents, and that winter was spent on celebration. The next four years brought change in The Block, as the older residents died, and their children replaced them. Raised in the shadow of the Slavers, these new helpers had far less qualms about the flesh trade, and took some pleasure in the wealth that it brought it. This heralded a period of updates around The Block, with irrigation added to the fields, leading to a small pond that was dug by slaves, and which fish were put into. It is also when the settlement came into contact with Forrest Heights, a small community of wealthy individuals who dedicated their time to idle pursuits, namely the cultivation of flowers. This proved a lucrative market, with a dozen slaves sold there in the first two months of contact. The slavers used these profits to add more defenses, predominately, turrets. The Slavers grew in numbers over the next few years, as raiders joined the settlement, and their own children grew. This proved to be needed as the nearby tribes began to harass their patrols, and stopping captures in some cases. While this made the difference between third and fourth place between the crews, it effected them little overall. Of more concern was the mercenary bands hired in 2220 by a consortium of merchants and the self-righteous of the region. The mercenaries attempted one assault on The Block, but the defenders made quick work of them. They then turned to harassing their patrols, often striking when they were about to make a capture, or firing on them when they were already under attack. This lasted for two years, and while it did diminish the reach of the slavers, it never dealt them a serious blow. The mercenaries ended their activities after the merchants were no longer able to afford them, and while most drifted off, ten of them approached The Block and asked to join the slavers. The Council naturally was wary of this request, viewing it as the precursor of a betrayal, but the mercenaries then presented one of the merchants who hired them, and killed them in view of the walls. Intrigued by this display, the slavers opened their gate, and the Cost Cutters then joined the contest. The rest of the decade was spent recovering from the attacks, though the slavers still brought in a respectable amount of flesh. The Block continued to operate for the next decade, with both it's slavers and residents expanding their ranks from birth and migration. They would have to put in more effort to make their captures however, as those who could settled farther away. Those tribes and wasters that remained increased their resistance efforts, with The Chainers being practically destroyed in one such battle. The survivors would join other crews, and revenge was taken on a group of tribals. The conflicted ended in 2235, when The Council sent an emissary to the tribals, asking for a parley. While the tribals were suspicious of this, they finally agreed, and were surprised to find the slavers wanting peace. This was a result of the interruption to their raids, and a related loss in their profits. The tribals refused this proposal at first due to the blood spilled, but after The Block offered two-thousand caps, and all tribal prisoners freed, as well as a non-aggression pact, a deal was struck. While beneficial for The Block as a whole, some in the ranks thought their leaders had sold out to the tribals, and continued to harass them. This ended with the offenders collared and marched to the tribal camps, where they were burnt at a stake. The tribals accepted this, but relations remained tense between neighbors. This also meant that the crews had to go farther afield to make their captures, a development that took them in the ruins of Seattle, as well as east over the Cascades. Those in the city found a rich environment, though had to contend with the militias that had form to repel the New Order. As the years passed and the racists were destroyed however, the Slavers had an easier time making captures. They would also begin a beneficial relation with the King’s Council. Those that crossed the mountains on the other hand, found themselves clashing with hostile tribes and raiders that took offense to the trespass. Both paths managed to produce caps, and The Block passed the years with a low profile. The next decade saw conflict fall on the settlement however, as without the threat of genocidal bigots, the people now turned to the slavers as a threat to their existence. This resistance came mainly in the form of skirmishes with crews when they ventured into the ruins, though 2254 saw siege fall on the site, again brought by merchants and carried out by mercenaries. It would also see new customers emerge, with Larkin Solutions in particular always needing a large amount of bodies. As the decade passed and the 60s came, rumors of war began to reach The Block, all of them mentioning a large nation to the south. When recruiters from the Airport visited, and told them of the Sponsored expedition south to fight, about two dozen slavers, mainly younger members joined, some without even asking their chiefs. This embarrassed the Council at first, but they quickly came out in support of the free army and volunteers. They did stop short of funding those who left however, allowing them to take only what they already had. After the disbanding of the group, many of the slavers returned, embittered by the perceived betrayal of their allies, and the actions of some raiders that hasn't the break up. They quick got their chance at vengeance when alerted the king's council was moving against them. These veterans banded together into a new crew and joined the raiders, bringing a dozen degenerates back in collars. Calling themselves the Freemen, they applied their experience to great benefit in the contest. They would also tap a new customer, several members reaching out to a former comrade from the war. The rising chem lord needed subjects to test new formulas on, and was willing to pay part of the cost with chems, which work in both sides favor. The 2270s saw the Block grow slightly, as returning soldiers were either unable to settle back into their previous routines, or skilled (if morally bankrupt) individuals joined to gain the benefits. The decade also saw more threats to the slavers emerge, notably the Badlanders coming from Alaska. While those that served in the wars had experience with their southern cousins, those from the north were much better armed, and quickly claimed ground in the ruins. Feeling threatened like much of the city, The Council agreed to secretly back the efforts of those sent to fight them, channeling caps to various groups. They also increased The Block's defenses, in preparation for attack. Currently This attack failed to appear and the years passed into the 2280s. The slavers maintained their ties to King's Council, and even funded the construction of Summer Camp, seeing it as a way for the raiders to distract from them. they would also become frequent customers Flood City Kennels, using the dogs to help guard their compound. The Council also agreed to retain Larkin Solutions to harass The FNA group in town, knowing if they are successful in their war against King's Council, they will turn to them. Closer to home, the residents have managed to repair and renovate all the structures on the campus for living, though they all have varying amounts of features, with some just sporting cots and heaters. This works to motivate the crews however, as they seek to boost their totals before the winter sets in. 2287 has seen them maintain their raids, though several of them have been sent to Summer Camp with plans to send more in the near future. Government While The Block is officially ran by a council of the crew leaders, in practice each slaver crew handles their own affairs, and the non-slave residents take care of the actual day-to-day affairs. This is everything from cataloging the captures and their sell price, preparing meals, and keeping the settlement running. While the residents aren't represented on the council, dispute between one of them and a slaver are often resolved in their favor, as most slavers recognize their value. They also occupy a nebulous position in the hierarchy, as they are free to move around, have permanent housing and can become slavers if they want to, they are also looked down on to some degree, and some slavers think of them as servants. Within each band things are managed by the chief, whose is authority is based on whatever criteria their crew requires in a leader. For a new crew to be admitted to be the Block requires either an unanimous vote of the council, or a large bribe of caps and materiel. Individual slavers are added much easier, with those who walk to the gate given a chance to prove themselves. If a recruit performs unsatisfactory but posses a skill they often become a resident, being protected and fed for their work. If someone has no ability however, they will end up in a cage with a collar. Economy The Block runs almost exclusively on the flesh trade, with the capture and selling of slaves the foundation of almost interactions with the outside. Merchants of the unsavory variety visit every few weeks to trade weapons, parts, tools and whatever supplies the slavers request. Some carry slaves back with them for distribution in farther locales, though most take caps. The primary buyers of the Block's prime export are wealthy individuals and groups, who after identifying themselves are taken inside to view the merchandise. Each cage is marked with a price, and a non-slaver resident is nearby to mark the purchase down in the Ledger, where the scores are tallied for the winter. The Block also maintains a garden and a pen of Bleaters for food and milk, though it is primarily for the residents, as most slavers stockpile their preferred food ahead of time. Notable Crews and Individuals While there are more than a dozen crews and hundreds of individuals in The Block, some stand out; *Dan Reelie's Travelling Zoo; Originally a ordinary band, their escape from a Free Northwestern Army group made them celebrities among the slavers. Their continuation of the ruse and the resulting profits, along with their sexual appetites, has kept them in the spotlight. *Reginald Morington; While not officially a member of the settlement, he is a frequent visitor and often coordinates raids with them. Reginald will occasionally talk philosophy with the more intellectually inclined slavers, as well as mention the Crystal Truth if asked about his beliefs. *Ralph Machi; an unlikable person even by slaver standards, Ralph is tolerated only because of the service he provides. One of only two collar makers in the settlement, Ralph has shown skill in designing new and more efficient models, though most just want to punch him. Category:Slavers Category:Communities Category:Cascadia